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–+ servings

Tofu Hanami Dango (Cherry Blossom Dumplings)

Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time20 minutes
Total Time30 minutes
Author Yuto Omura
Servings 6 servings

Ingredients 
 

  • 6 bamboo skewers
  • 100 g glutinous rice flour shiratamako or mochiko
  • 20 g rice flour (joshinko)
  • 45 g granulated sugar
  • 120 g silken tofu
  • ¼ tsp matcha powder
  • 1 drop pink food coloring or small amount of red
  • 1 drop cherry blossom extract or flavoring of your choice (optional)

Instructions 

  • Soak 6 bamboo skewers in a glass of water.
    soaking 6 bamboo skewers in a glass of water
  • Pour 100 g glutinous rice flour, 20 g rice flour (joshinko) and 45 g granulated sugar into a bowl and mix until well incorporated.
    shiratamako (glutinous rice flour), joshinko (rice flour) and sugar in a glass mixing bowl
  • Place 120 g silken tofu into the bowl one third at a time, thoroughly mixing with a spoon or spatula between each addition until the texture resembles scrambled eggs.
    glutinous rice flour, rice flour and sugar mixed with silken tofu until it resembles scrambled egg
  • Use your hands to knead the mixture into a smooth dough with a texture similar to play dough. If it's dry or cracks, add a small amount of water (a sprinkle) or extra tofu (about 1 tsp at a time). Divide it into three equal pieces, use scales for accuracy.
    dango dough divided into 3
  • Place each piece in a separate bowl. Leave one plain, add ¼ tsp matcha powder to one and 1 drop pink food coloring and 1 drop cherry blossom extract to the other.
    matcha powder added to one ball of dango dough
  • Knead until the color/flavor is evenly distributed throughout the dough. Wash your hands between kneading each color.
    dango dough divided into 3 pieces, one colored with pink food dye and flavored with cherry blossom essence, one plain and one green matcha
  • Start heating a pot of water to a rolling boil. While you wait, divide the dough into 15g pieces. Roll the white pieces into balls first, and cover the pink and green ones with a damp tea towel to stop them from drying out.
    each color of hanami dango divided into 6 equal pieces and rolled into balls
  • Once the water is boiling, add the white balls and boil until they start to float (about 5 minutes). While you wait, prepare a bowl of ice cold water and roll the other colors.
    6 white dango boiling in a pot of water
  • When they start to float, set a timer for 2 minutes. Once the timer is up, transfer the dango to the ice water to halt cooking and cool them quickly. 
    transferring white dango to a bowl of ice water to cool
  • Repeat with the pink and green dango, cooking each color in separate batches. I usually do pink second, and green last. Top up the water in the pot if needed.
    pink dango for hanami dango boiling in a pot of water
  • Transfer to the ice water and add more ice if necessary.
    pink, white and green dango chilling in a bowl of ice water
  • Once cooled, push the dango onto the soaked skewers. Start with green, then white and lastly pink. Your dango should have green at the bottom and pink at the top. Enjoy the same day.
    pushing dango balls onto soaked bamboo skewer (green at the bottom, white in the middle and pink at the top)

Notes

  • Use berry powder or a few drops beetroot juice as a natural substitute for red/pink food dye.
  • If you use mochiko instead of shiratamako, the texture will be slightly firmer.
  • Cover the dango dough with a damp tea towel to stop it from drying out.
  • If the dough becomes dry, sprinkle your hands with water and knead again to add a small amount of moisture back in.
  • Wash your hands each time you handle a different color to prevent mixing colors.
  • Boil each color separately to prevent mixing colors.
  • If you want to eat it the next day, wrap it in baking parchment and store in an air tight container in the freezer. (Do not store in the fridge, this will make them hard.)
  • Freeze for up to one month. Thaw at room temperature (about 30 mins to 1 hour) and enjoy!